SkekTek was the Skeksis' Scientist, and counterpart to urTih the Alchemist. He was feared by the other Skeksis, as they understood nothing of his work. SkekZok the Ritual Master considered skekTek to be a self-mutilating crank, as he had amputated one of his own arms and legs, replacing them with mechanized constructs. He had also replaced his jugular vein with a transparent tube, in order to study his own circulation. His main responsibilities lay in devising new ways to prolong the Skeksis' lives, primarily through using the beams of the Dark Crystal to extract the vital essence from Podlings and Gelflings. Through this process, he could also reduce the drained victims to the state of unthinking slaves. His other main achievements were the creation of the Garthim, and the modification of Podling vocal chords to incorporate them into the Pod choir.[2]Aughra's relationship with skekTek was a bitter one, as she recalled that his urSkek predecessor, TekTih, had helped her build her observatory. She dismissed his power of thought as simply his attempts to decipher the confused knowledge inherited from his urSkek incarnation.[3] He was part of a political alliance consisting of himself, skekUng the Garthim Master and skekNa the Slave Master.[2]

During the early period of the Garthim War, skekTek was blackmailed by skekLach the Collector into withholding essence from Emperor skekSo.[4] He attempted to tell skekUng of skekLach's treachery by hand gestures. SkekUng did not understand what the Scientist was trying to say and advised him to keep quiet.[5] He died many trine later, when the Gelfling Kira, whom he was trying to drain of essence, summoned his laboratory animals to attack and push him down the shaft of the Castle.[6]